The End of a Chapter
by emackenzie
Summary: Things don't always turn out the way we plan, and when Veronica is pregnant, nothings goes the way she thought it would.


She sat in the cold office on the paper that crinkled with every movement. She wasn't nervous, she was impatient. She had only been back in Neptune for a few days, and hadn't even had the time to make the rounds. Her internship had been amazing, her time away from Neptune had been eye opening, making her feel like maybe she did finally know what she wanted, what really mattered.

"Ms. Mars." Doctor Bell greeted her as she came into the room for the third time during her appointment.

"Hey doc." Veronica smiled tightly. How long was this going to take?

"Veronica." The older woman smiled sitting down on the stool. This was the same doctor she had had since she was little, since her mother had left. Staring at her, Veronica tired to remember what color her hair use to be. Maybe it was brown? She couldn't recalled, but now it showed her age, the silver grey that she wore so well. "Your test results are back, sorry for making you wait."

"If you keep me waiting much longer, I'm going to start thinking the worse here." Veronica laughed.

"The results show that you're pregnant."

"What?" Veronica laughed, this was a joke, it had to be a joke. She wasn't pregnant. "There is no way I can, I mean, how did this happen."

"You know all about the birds and the bees dear." Dr. Bell told her.

"No, that's not what I mean, I mean how." Veronica shook her head. "Are you sure?" she asked. "I've been gone for six weeks, and trust me, nothing, nothing happened."

"My guess is that you're about 6 to 8 weeks along. We could talk about your options."

Veronica was quick to dismiss everything else the doctor had to say. She couldn't even wrap her own mind around all of this. She took a card from the doctor, a referral to another doctor.

ooooo

Her small hand nervously tapped on the door, and she knew he wouldn't be able to hear it. She could hardly hear it. Through the grape vine she had heard that he was back. Dick had told Mac, Mac had told Wallace, and Wallace had told Veronica. No one was every sure how Veronica was react to news regarding him.

It had only been three weeks since she had found out, she had had three weeks to think, and come to a decision. She was quick to notice changes in her bodies, changes that no one else seemed to see, which was fine by her. She hadn't told anyone else yet, he needed to be the next person to know. She had gone to another doctor and found out more, her due date would be sometimes towards the middle of February. It was easy to figure out, because she knew the exact date she had had sex.

She took a deep breath and knocked a little louder this time, listening for any sounds of life on the other side of the door.

It flung open, and there he stood, in a pair of boxers, bed head and sleep in his eyes. She was suddenly taken back in time, standing in front of him the night after altran prom, confessing her feelings any to see Kendall snake her arms around him.

"I should have known moving wouldn't stop you from finding me."

"Did you want me to not find you?" Veronica asked. They hadn't spoke to each other since she had left, since he had left.

"Like I could play hide and seek with you." Logan sighed, stepping back to allow her in. "I'm assuming you have a reason for coming by this early."

Yeah, she had a reason. She could feel her lips tug up in a smile as she stepped into his home, the hallway was bare, and she could see boxes stacked in what she guessed was the living room.

"I like it, feels more like you than the grand."Veronica told him, ignoring his comment.

"Yeah, well I can't live in a hotel forever." He said as he made his way down the hallway, before falling onto a couch. "So what is it you want Veronica? I haven't been back long enough to be accused of murder."

"What a friend can't just drop by?" she asked. Part of her wondered if he would be able to see the changes in her body, if he'd notice the way her stomach seemed to stick out a little more, it was rounded and less flat. But she knew she was the only one that saw it.

"A friend could, but you?" he questioned.

"Okay, so I do have a reason." Veronica sighed, and took a seat on the couch opposite him. "Back in May, I had that cold, and was taking antibiotics." She started, feeling the butterflies in her stomach, and knew that she would stumble over the words. It was a lot harder to say than she thought it would be.

"And your point?" he asked when she paused.

"The night before I left, when I came to the Grand…" Veronica looked at him with hope in her eyes, hope that he would be able to piece it all together and not make her say it. She was about to continue when a soft voice drifted down another hallway in Logan's new home.

"Lo?" a woman asked, coming into view. She was wearing one of Logan's many button up shirt, her chocolate brown hair piled on the top of her head in a messy but attractive bun. "There you are."

Veronica could feel all her blood run cold looking at the woman.

"Hey babe, sorry." Logan was quick to stand and kiss the woman, smiling at her, showing all the affection Veronica so fondly remembered. "Jay, this Veronica Mars." He only slightly gestured towards Veronica, all his attention now focused on the girl in his arms.

"Hello." She smiled softly. "Which box are the towels in? I want to shower." That was when Veronica noticed at accent. This wasn't just another of many girls, this was a girl he had brought back with him from his summer travels. Whether it be the hormone imbalance she had been warned about, or the way he looked at her, she couldn't be sure, but she could feel the hot tears building quickly.

"I don't know, look through the ones in the bedroom, I'll join you soon." Logan kissed her again before she skipped off back down towards the bedroom. He turned back to Veronica and smirked. "We haven't had time to really unpack yet…" he trailed off.

"Logan," Veronica took a deep breath and blinked repeatedly, feelings the warm tears. She had to hold them off for a little longer. "Back in May-" he cut her off.

"Veronica, I did a lot of thinking over the summer, and a lot of reflecting. I'm happy now, and I really want to just leave our past in the past."

"I understand that, but Logan, last May-" she tired again only to be cut off.

"God Veronica, I don't think you get it." He softly shouted, running his hand through his hair in frustration. "I'm happy with Jayleen, I don't want take a trip down memory lane with you. I don't want to relive May, or anytime that we were together. We didn't have a health relationship." He looked right at her, knowing his words would cut her deep. "It was no better than what I had with Lilly, you treat me just like she used to. So if you'll excuse me, I've got things to do, things that don't involve you anymore."

She watched his retreating figure, and finally felt the hot tears spill onto her cheeks. She turned and left out the same door she had come, making a new decision back her life. When she had first returned, she knew that she needed to make things right with Logan, that she wanted to be with him, and make it work, after finding about the pregnancy, she knew even more she needed to make it work with him, but now, Logan had made it clear, she meant nothing more to him than Lilly did now. She would stay out of his life, just as if she was Lilly.

ooooo

Months quickly passed and Veronica had found it easy to avoid Logan at all cost. It had only taken her two days after her attempt at telling Logan, before she felt like she could tell her dad. It had gone a lot smoother than she had pictured. He didn't yell, he didn't cry, he held her, and told her that everything was going to be fine. But he only got part of the story, no mentions of the Lilly comparison. When she had told Wallace, it took her own tears to keep him from going after Logan.

But she had the support of all her friends, and even a few surprising people. Apparently Dick loved babies, and Veronica knew that he would be the only connection this child would have to its father, the only balance she had. Mac had made Dick swear on his brother's grave to never mention anything to Logan.

It had been Dick that had been so helpful in Veronica's mission to never have to see Logan again. He had gotten her a copy of his schedule, and Veronica was easily able to plan her day around it. He never came to the library, so she wouldn't see him at work.

"Can I check this out?" Dick asked, tossing a copy of What to Expect When You're Expecting on the counter of the help desk.

"Uh…" Veronica picked up the book and looked at him questioningly. "I don't think the library has this book. Plus I'd be a little worried if you were procreating."

"Dude, Ronnie, it's not for me, obviously." Dick rolled his eyes. "You're the one with the bun in the oven."

"Please don't refer to my child as a bun." Veronica handed him back the book. Dick normally stopped by the library on Thursday's, the day Logan was on campus longer, to check on her, bring her a snack, and whatever else Dick did. "And I suggest you return this book to whoever you took it from."

"I bought it at the campus bookstore." Dick whispered, leaning on the counter now. "I thought it would be helpful, you know. Mac said you've been asking her mom a lot of questions, so I just thought…" he shrugged, swooping his hair to one side.

"You bought me a book?" Veronica asked, picking the book back up and looking at the cover. She couldn't break it to him that Wallace had already beat him to the punch and gotten it for her the day after she told him. No, this was a defining moment for them, a moment where Dick acted like a real person, and not the jackass he was in high school.

"You're not going to cry are you? Cause it says in there that there is a lot of crying that happens." Dick looked a little scared, unsure of how to react to her if she did start with the waterworks.

"You even read it?" Veronica could almost feel herself choking on the emotions boiling inside of her now. She had found that this was the hardest after, the emotions that she was so use to holding back and hiding turned up all the time. "Dick, this is seriously the nicest thing you've ever done, in your entire life."

"Hey, don't let it go to your head Ronnie." Dick told her. "My little buddy is in there, and I did it for him."

"Yeah, well your little buddy is hungry." Veronica sighed, looking down at her forming stomach. She was now 5 months along, and she felt like she had a balloon up her shirt at all times. The doctor had told her it was normal, that because of how small she was, she would appear to be bigger than most. Everyone had been very reassuring that she wasn't that big, yet. But because it was her body, everything felt bigger.

"That's because he knows it's almost turkey time." Dick beamed. He loved being able to call the baby a he, even though he had been hoping for a girl.

"Yes, well I'm not waiting another week for Thanksgiving." Veronica told him, holding her hand out for the protein bar, she knew he would have in his pocket.

Jokingly Dick hi fived her and then looked at her confused when she didn't withdraw her hand. "What do you want me to do with it?" he asked.

"Feed me." Veronica stated. "Feed the Buddha belly."

"Oh right." Dick laughed, and pulled out the bar, placing it in her hand. "So, uh, Mac and I were talking."

"That's normally a good sign." Veronica nodded. "She tends to say brilliant things."

"We were talking about Thanksgiving." Dick whispered, when someone in the library hushed them. "And I thought maybe, everyone would want to eat at my place?" he could see the clouds of disproval quickly sweep over her face. "I'm back in the Casablancas mansion, and well, there isn't really enough room for everyone to gather at Wallace's or at Mac's. And then I was thinking about how we can't leave your dad's friend out, the lawyer guy. Cause it would be like rude or something. And Weevil would needed to be invited, even though I think inviting the help is cool. Plus Chip and a few of the guys aren't going home." He added quickly. "I just thought there would be more room, and then you wouldn't be bouncing from house to house all day."

"I can't believe I'm going to say this, but that's actually an almost perfect plan." Veronica smiled at Dick.

"Awe, he who shall not be named." Dick noted quickly that he had forgot to mention Logan. "He will be out of the country for the break." Spending it with Jayleen, that was something he knew he didn't need to add. "So it'll just be whoever you approve, and the guys."

"It sounds perfect Dick, I actually like the idea." Veronica smiled and reached up to ruffle the surfers locks. "I'll let dad and Cliff know tonight."

"Sweet deal!" Dick said loudly, turning red when he once again was shushed. "Later Mars." He pointed to her before leaving her behind the help desk in the library.

ooooo

The Casablancas mansion was nothing like Veronica had remembered it. It was more warm and inviting, and instantly Veronica knew Mac had something to do with that. There were actually pictures that hung on the walls now, and not just art work. Veronica knew that a lot of the pictures were one's she had taken, one's Dick insisted on hanging up, because she recognized one of Wallace and Dick shooting hoops. They are spent a lot of the last four months together.

"Oh my goodness, that smells so good." Veronica sniffed the air again from her seat on the couch, the football game in the background now, and everyone watched the pregnant blonde drool over the smell.

"Turkey does tend to do that." Wallace laughed, slapping her on the back. "But I think you're going to have to wait awhile longer."

"Are you sure there's nothing I can do to help in the kitchen?" she asked, longingly looking at the kitchen door. What she wouldn't give to be in there right now with Mac, Alicia, and Letty, Weevil's grandmother.

"We want dinner too, V. So that means you've gotta stay out there with us." Weevil teased. Veronica had been pushed out of the kitchen an hour ago, Letty mumbling in Spanish about her fingers getting cut off because she wouldn't stop snaking.

"If you're nice, I'll go sneak you something." Dick whispered out of the side of his mouth from his seat next to Veronica.

"Dick, I'm always nice." Veronica smiled sweetly at him, her head tilting to the side just a little as she watched him hop up from his seat.

After disappearing, it was only seconds later the door opened again. "Mr. Mars, the turkey's ready to come out, and Weevil you're grandma's yelling at me."

"Time for a man in the kitchen." Keith laughed pushing himself up off the couch. "Come one Cliff, I'll show you how to cut a bird."

"You better not have pissed off my grandma man." Weevil said following the two older men through the door.

"I got to call my dad and wish him a happy Thanksgiving, I'll check on the kids while I'm at it." Wallace said excusing himself as well, leaving Dick and Veronica in the living room, with football playing on the large TV.

"This was all I could get before she started yelling." Dick offered Veronica a roll, and a few carrots, before jumping over the back of the couch and sitting slouched down next to her.

"It'll work." Veronica smiled, picking at the roll and popping the bites into her mouth. The two were silent, eyes on the screen, for a short while. "Oh my gosh." Veronica whispered, eyes widening, she put down the food in her hands and placed both hands on her growing stomach.

"What?" Dick asked, glancing up at her, his head closer to her stomach than anything.

"The baby, it's moving." She whispered, a smile spreading over her face.

"Seriously?" Dick asked, reaching out to touch her stomach, and for the first time, not having his hand slapped away. "I don't feel anything." He moaned, moving closer.

"It's like flutters, or something. I don't know how to explain it." Veronica laughed softly, feelings tears of joy peck at her eyes.

"Well, this surely is a sight to behold. My best friend and my ex, pregnant." A voice broke through their private moment, making both Dick and Veronica freeze in confusion. "I suppose I should congratulate the two of you."

"It's not-" Veronica started the same time as Dick

"Dude, Logan, what are you doing here man?" Dick was able to finish his sentence, bouncing back from the shock faster. He moved off the couch quickly and towards his friend.

"I was invited, or did you forget that you told me, if I was around to come by." Logan kept his eyes locked on Veronica's form, her stomach. He could almost feel the anger twitching on his face, turning his expression into something else, something evil. "An over look on your part, since you've obviously got company."

"You said you were going home with Jayleen for the break. I didn't think you were going to actually be here." Dick whispered to him.

"Hey V, dad wants to know if you're a Bears fan. He wants to send an outfit for the baby." Wallace said coming in through another hallway, instantly becoming aware of the scene that was unfolding in front of him. "You've got to be kidding me." He shook his head looking at Logan.

"Is this like Jerry Springer, don't know who the daddy is?" Logan's words cut through the air, making Veronica jump off the couch.

"You did not just go there." Wallace was faster than his pregnant friend. "You seriously do not want to throw down with me right now man." He was instantly getting up in Logan's face, feeling all the anger he had towards the boy growing at his words. He had never really cared for Logan, from high school to college, he didn't seem to grow much. And Wallace could never understand what Veronica saw in him, or how she could put up with the way he treated her.

"Oh pretty sure it'd be me throwing you down." Logan spat at him.

"Not in my house!" Dick shouted, pushing them apart.

"Fuck this, and fuck you Dick. I don't need this shit, I don't need any of you." Logan yelled, throwing his arms up before storming back out of the house.

The tears that had only moments ago been those of joy had quickly turned into sorrow. Doing the best she could to keep her face hidden, Veronica turned to escape the living room, and those coming out of the kitchen to see what was going on.

"What on earth is all the yelling over?" Alicia asked, watching as Veronica disappeared down the hallway Wallace had come from.

"Logan fucking Echolls." Wallace shouted, still angry.

"Language!" his mother was quick to reprimand him.

"Dick?" Mac asked with hands on her hips.

"What? He told me he was going home with Jayleen for break. I seriously didn't think he'd be here."

"I'll go check on Veronica." Keith sighed, handing the carving knife over to Cliff.

He could his daughter easily enough, sitting on the toilet in the bathroom, her face hidden in her hands. "Hey there kiddo." His smile was sad when he looked down at his only daughter. "You okay?"

"Am I okay?" Veronica laughed, choking on her tears. "I'm six months pregnant, and Logan just accused me of not knowing who the baby's father is." She shook her head at the memory of his words still playing in her head.

"Well, maybe it's time to talk to him, again." Keith offered.

ooooo

"Seriously, you invited him?" Mac slapped the still shocked Dick over the head.

"Yeah, he's my best dude, and I only did it because he told me first he was going to England with Jayleen to visit her parents." Dick told her with a shrug of his shoulders, his hands in his pockets. "I seriously didn't expect him to show up, and then think I got Ronnie knocked up."

"Wait, he thought you, and her?" Mac asked, her eyes growing. "No wonder she's sobbing in the bathroom. Seriously Dick, if it wasn't Thanksgiving, I'd sick Weevil on you."

"Shit, he thinks Ronnie and I." Dick mumbled, more cursers words being said under his breath. "I've got to go."

Mac didn't have a chance to protest, before he took off, running out of the house. "Great, just great."

ooooo

"Logan!" Dick shouted, throwing open the door to his best friend's home.

"You asshole." Was all Logan shouted before his fist connected with Dick's jaw, sending him back into an empty table in Logan's empty house.

"No dude, you're the fucking asshole!" Dick shouted at his friend as he regained his balance.

"How am I the asshole here?" Logan asked whipping around. Dick was the one that had been cuddled up on the couch with his obviously pregnant ex.

"Why do you think you even have the right to be mad?" Dick shouted back. He had to watch his words, and that was hard to do. He had felt so much anger towards Logan since he had found out, since Mac had punched him for calling Ronnie fat. "You've got Jayleen, you don't get to have Veronica too!"

"This breaks the guy code, you can't knock up my exs!" Logan yelled.

"I didn't fucking knock up Ronnie man!" Dick shouted, with some odd hand gesture. "You of all people should know she wouldn't sleep with me, even if she was drunk."

Logan knew Dick wouldn't do that to him, he wouldn't go there. But still, someone had knocked her up, and he was quick to run through the string of men in her life. Wallace, Piz, Weevil, someone she met this summer, someone he didn't know about. The thought made him sick. He pulled at his hair groaning in frustration. "Fuck!" he screamed kicking the wall with his foot as hard as he could, not caring that it broke through the drywall.

"Dude." Dick said softly this time, knowing his friend needed comfort, the kind he wouldn't be able to give him.

Something other than anger washed over Logan, defeat, sadness, maybe reality? He couldn't be sure what it was. But he felt all the fight drain from his body, as the sobs started to take over, tearing from his chest, making him shake. He sank to the floor, cradling his head in his hands.

Dick did the only thing he knew; he grabbed the bottle of amber liquid and sunk down next to him.

oooooo

With a much more steady hand this time, Veronica knocked on Logan's door, only to receive no answer. She looked behind her, and Dick's car in the driveway, knowing they had to still be there. She twisted the knob and pushed open the door. She could smell the liquor before she even made it to the living room, where both boys were passed out, snoring on the floor.

Veronica rolled her eyes, and plopped down on the couch to do the only thing she could, wait. She didn't want to wake them, because she didn't want to have this discussion with a drunk Logan. But her restlessness won out after sitting there for almost an hour. She had other things to do.

She kicked Dick gently with her foot until his eyes opened.

"Shit." Dick mumbled, using his hand to block out the light in the room. "Damn Ronnie, why are you waking me up?" he moaned, looking onto his back.

"Scat." She told him, arms crossed, nodding her head towards what she assumed was a bedroom. The waiting conversation was going to be private.

Dick moaned and mumbled as he tried to sit up, finding that the world was still spinning faster than it should. It wasn't so much the world spinning, as it was him. He resorted to his hands and knees, pulling himself along slowly until he was far enough away he didn't feel Veronica's eyes on him anymore.

Next, Veronica shoved Logan, a little harder than she had with Dick, but still finding it worked the same.

Logan was quick to block out the uninviting sun and roll to his side. His body felt heavy. Through sleep filled eyes he didn't see Dick laying next to him, instead he saw a pair of brown boots, one's he recognized simply because he had bought them. He could feel his stomach twist, and not because of the hangover he felt settling in his bones, but because she was standing over him.

"Get up." Veronica ordered, no niceness in her tone.

The memories of yesterday flooded back as he looked up at her, taking in the true form of her stomach.

"What the hell do you want?" he mumbled, pushing himself into a sitting position. He knew they would fight, it was all they ever knew how to do.

"You don't get to be mad at me, you don't even really get to speak." Veronica told him, while he crawled onto the couch. "You get to listen, and that's really all I need from you."

"I don't get to be mad?" Logan laughed. "I'm a lot more than mad. The thought that someone did this to you, you don't even know what it does to me. How pissed it makes me."

"Why does it matter what anyone else does to me? I'm nothing, remember, I treat you no better than Lilly, your words not mine." She shot back at him.

"Because!" Logan yelled standing up. "The idea that someone else did this to you, that someone else touched you, it drives me insane." He practically exploded at her. "I could kill him!"

"Yeah, well suicide is illegal, so that won't really work in your favor." That wasn't how she wanted to tell him, this wasn't the way she wanted it to go. But things with him, they always had to be more dramatic than necessary.

"Suicide?" Logan almost whispered, staring at her in confusion.

"God, I tried to tell you, but you can never just listen can you?" Veronica didn't bother to tried and hide the tears that were forming in her eyes. "Back in May, I had been on some antibiotics. I didn't even think about the fact that they screw up the whole pill thing because Piz and I, we weren't, couldn't. And then that night, it all happened so fast, we were swept away in it all, that we didn't even stop to make sure we were double covered." She sighed and sat down. "By the time I got back from Virginia, I was sick and went into the doctor to see why, and well," she gestured at her stomach. "This was why."

"And you weren't going to tell me?" Logan asked, falling back onto the other couch.

"I tried to tell you. And you succeed in making me feel worthless." Veronica gave him a fake smile. "I'm no better than Lilly." It was something that had run through her head so many times since he had said it, that she started to wonder if it was actually true. They did have a pattern of breaking up and getting back together. But Veronica never once cheated on him, or used him, or tried to hurt him.

Logan shook his head, trying to understand, trying to wrap his mind around all of this. Veronica was pregnant, and it was his. The baby growing inside of her was something that they had made together. She hadn't made it with Weevil, or Piz, or even some stranger he didn't know, it was his baby, their baby. He could feel the smile spreading slowly over his face, the heaviness in his gut was replaced with what felt like a new sense of reality, a new lightness he had never felt before. He had made a baby with the girl sitting before him. Before he could stop himself, or even realize what he was doing, he was on the floor at her knees, placing his hands on her stomach.

Veronica leaned back, away from him. "What the hell are you doing?" she asked, pushing his hands away from her. She studied his face, the grin he wore seemed to actually meet his eyes, it was something she hadn't seen in a long time.

"We're going to have a baby." He whispered, looking up at her for only a breath moment before looking back down at her stomach.

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no." Veronica said quickly, standing and moving away from him, putting distance between them, and whatever else she could find. "I am going to have a baby." She looked at him with facially features harder than stone, wanting to make her point. "You made your choice five months ago, and I made mine."

"I wouldn't have said any of that, if you had just told me. Veronica, you can't keep me away from my child." Logan shot at her.

"Your child?" Veronica laughed. "You don't even know the sex, or the due date. You don't know anything about my baby." She yelled. "I don't want you in my life anymore Logan, I can't have you in our lives. You're not ready to be a parent, and I'm not putting him through what you went through." Her finally words hung in the air, and she knew that he would take her words to mean something different. She didn't fear that Logan would be abusive like his father, no, she knew that Logan would be the most loving and caring father in the world. She did however mean, that Logan wasn't stable, mush like his own parents. They were in and out of his life, going weeks without seeing him, seeing each other. Veronica couldn't do that. She was working towards something stable, something real.

Logan's temper always seemed to get the better of his, and case in point would be the way he was reacting to her words right now. He wasn't Aaron, but he sure felt like he could break something. It hurt so deep, deeper than anything else, that she could think of him like that.

It was with those final words that she turned and left him, seething in his own anger and hate.

ooooo

That odd Thanksgiving day had placed a new strain on everyone's lives. Veronica was more emotional, Keith was worried, Wallace was irritated at even the sight of Logan or Dick, Mac was walking on egg shells, and Dick was trying to keep Logan together.

It had only been about a week since that day that Dick sought out Veronica in the library. Something that had become normal for him to do, but now seemed uncomfortable and forced.

"I didn't think I'd see you for awhile." Veronica sighed.

"Things are weird." Dick finally told her.

"I'm 26 weeks pregnant, you don't have to tell me how weird things are." Veronica snapped at him, but not regretting it. What happened wasn't his fault, but before Dick had always been a good outlet.

"I feel like I'm in the middle of you two." Dick whispered, his hands in his back pockets as he looked at her on the other side of the round desk area. "Like I have to pick if I need to be mad at you, or mad at him."

"I don't expect you to be mad at anyone." Veronica said continuing about her business. She didn't want to talk about Logan, or even think about him.

"Can I make it up to you man?" Dick sighed. "This guilt or whatever is eating away at me, I don't want you or my little buddy mad at me."

"No one's mad." Veronica sighed, setting down the book to finally look at Dick. "But you know I won't turn down food."

"Sweet, so I was thinking Luigi's?" Dick asked. "Or do you have so weird cravings I don't know about?"

"Just nacho cheese and bread sticks." Veronica laughed softly. She really couldn't be mad at Dick. She saw him as a puppy dog, who just looked for attention and love. "Pick me up in an hour when I'm off?"

"Sure think Ronnie." Dick nodded at her before leaving the library, and dialing Mac once he was outside. "So the dudet isn't pissed with me. And all the plans at set in motion."

"Perfect, don't screw this one up, or I really will sick Weevil on you." Mac snapped over the phone.

ooooo

"Wow Mac." Keith said as he came into the back room at Luigi's. "This place looks like a nursery explosion."

"Sadly, I can't say I did any of it. It was mainly my mom and Alicia. I just ordered the food." Decorating wasn't something Mac was skilled at, in fact when she had decided to throw Veronica the baby shower, she had pictured a few balloons and blue and green streamers, what laid before them now was entirely different. There were streamers, which were perfectly hung, with a matching banner, a diaper wreath, with little toys tied to it, baby pictures of everyone hung around the room, and a stack of presents all wrapped in matching colors. Even the cake that sat off to the side of the room was in the shape of a diaper.

"Well either way, it looks amazing." Keith smiled, knowing it would bring his daughter to tears. "I brought the cheese." He held up the bag, handing it to her.

"Perfect." Mac smiled taking it from him. "She'll be glad to have it."

As the two worked to stack the presents, silence hung between them.

"Mac." Keith finally broke it. "Can I ask you something, and get an honest answer?"

"No offense Sheriff, but lying to you would only get me into trouble." She pointed out.

"How she's doing?" Keith whispered. It was a loaded question and anyone would know that. He wasn't just asking how she was, but _how_ she was. His daughter thought she was sneaky, not telling him the whole truth, but he was just as sneaky and wise. He knew what parts she was leaving out of her tale.

"I think she's holding it together, because she doesn't know what else to do." Mac told him with a sad smile. They had all at one point or another wanted to go to Logan and tell him, make him listen. But Veronica had been so set adjust it, and only Wallace seemed to understand why. "I don't think she's ready though sir, to do this alone. I don't think anyone is ever ready to go at it alone."

"She's not alone, she's got us." Keith wanted to sound reassuring.

"You know what I mean Mr. Mars. Even with us, it's not the same as it would be with him." It made Mac said to think about. She remembered when they were looking through baby pictures, and Veronica had broken down into tears when she saw the classic on of her sleeping on her father's chest as a baby. It was heartbreaking to watch.

The baby shower was a success. Both Keith and Veronica were overwhelmed by the gifts, it was more than they expected. Dick had paid for the nursery furniture, and Wallace and Mac went together to get all of the bedding, curtains, and wall boarder. Alicia had gotten her odds and ends, thing she said she wished she knew to have when she had Wallace, and Mac's mom, Natalie got her all the stander gifts, receiving blankets, diapers, bibs, bottles, plugs, wipes, and solid colored oneies. Park and Piz had gone together and picked out a car seat Mac had suggested. Even Weevile had gotten her a baby bouncer. There were other people there, all had brought her wonderful gifts, things that made her eyes burn with tears.

"I don't even know how to thank all of you." Veronica said looking at everyone.

"Just make sure we all get to meet the little guy." Inga laughed.

"And don't give him a brother or sister anytime soon." Someone in the back joked, making the whole party laugh.

"I don't think we'll have to worry about that." Veronica smiled, pushing the table to help herself stand. Her stomach somewhat hidden under the sweatshirt that use to be baggy, but only almost fitting. "For now, there is a small person pressing on my bladder."

"TMI V." Wallace laughed, watching as Dick, who was closest helped her out of the room.

"So were you really surprised?" Dick asked, as they walked out of the back room and into the main part of the restaurant.

"You have no idea, it was perfect." Veronica smiled up at him. "This baby is messing with my spider sense, because I didn't have any clue." After the events of the following week, she needed this, she needed the break from thinking.

"Good, I can check it off my bucket list." Dick laughed as they walked towards the restrooms. He knew who was waiting at the front of the restaurant, and stepped in front of his short blond friend. "There's one more thing." He nearly whispered, looking at his hands as he became nervous. "It's like, well don't get mad dude, cause he begged me."

"What are you talking about?" Veronica asked. "If you don't move I'm going to pee my pants Dick." She tried to go left, knowing he would try to stop her, so she quickly moved to get right getting around him, only to freeze in her tracks looking up at him. "He's here." She whispered.

"Veronica." Logan nodded down at her.

"Why is he here?" She asked turning to look up at Dick. "Why are you here?"

"I brought you something, that's all, I promise."Logan said showing the small blue wrapped gift in his hands.

"I don't want it." Veronica said turning around to leave.

"Can you stop being a bitch, for like two seconds?" Logan huffed out with an eye roll.

Veronica turned around quickly to stare at him. "I'm sorry, I thought I was just as bad as Lilly was, I thought I was supposed to be a bitch." She didn't wait for a response this time. She just headed straight towards the bathroom, not spearing a single glance at anyone.

ooooo

There wasn't enough ice-cream in Balabboa County to cheer up a sad pregnant woman, nor enough garlic bread and nacho cheese.

"I think she stopped crying." Wallace whispered to Mac from the Mars family kitchen. The small apartment was packed to the brim with all the gifts from the shower, and the boxes of baby furniture. The baby shower had come to an end shortly after Logan had made an appearance, and Veronica had waited until she made it home to break down into tears.

"Good, go talk to her." Mac said pushing him with her arm.

"And say what?" Wallace asked. He didn't know what would make it worse or better at this point. Heck, he wasn't even sure if it could get better. But his concerns went unheard, as Mac pushed him towards her once again.

"Hey V." Wallace said approaching her slowly.

Veronica only nodded in response, her eyes focused on something else, something no one else could see.

Wallace nervously glanced back at Mac, unsure of what to say. "So, uh, you wanna talk about it?" he asked. "Or can I finally beat the shit out of them?"

The mental picture of Wallace fighting Logan was comically. Logan had a good five inches on Wallace, and was known for being ruthless in fights. She had never seen Wallace raise a fist at anyone.

"Cause you know, I've been wanting to beat his ass for like six months now, and lets face it, Dick could always use a good beating."

"I don't think it would help, but thanks." Veronica's voice was rough from the tears.

"Hey, don't mention it, I would enjoy it."

"I just-" Veronica shook her head. "He…"

"You want to talk about it?"Mac asked. She knew Veronica, she didn't want to talk about anything, and she needed to know that right now, if she didn't want to, it'd be okay, they understood.

"I don't understand him." She finally whispered.

"Well, maybe this will help?" Mac asked, handing her the gift that Logan had tried to give her earlier.

Veronica stared at the box like it was something that would harm her if she touched it.

"Want me to open it?" Wallace asked, but didn't wait for a response, knowing she didn't want to see what was in there. She needed to see it, she needed to at least give him a chance. He tore the paper quickly, ignoring her protest.

"What is it?" Veronica asked, unable to see inside the box.

"A bunch of stuff." Wallace said shrugging. "Not sure how all this is a baby present, but whatever." He held up a spiral notebook, a picture of Logan and Veronica from their last summer together, a brown teddy bear, and a costume oneies with the words 'Mommies a badass, Daddies a jerk.'

Veronica was quick to take each item from Wallace, and told her hold, clutching to it like her life depended on those few items. And to no ones surprised, they brought on a new wave of tears.

ooooo  
"And her sidekick shows up." Logan laughed opening the door. It was nearly midnight, and he was starting to wonder when the unexpected visitors would stop.

"You really wanna be calling names right now man?" Wallace asked looking up at him.

"Come, join the rest of them." Logan rolled his eyes and pointed towards the kitchen, allowing Wallace in.

"Them?" When Wallace entered the kitchen he was only slightly surprised at what laid before him. Keith Mars was sat at the table, next to Dick and Mac. "And here I thought we all promised not to get in the middle." He shook his head.

"Don't act all righteous, you're here for the same reason we are." Mac told him.

"No, I'm here to deliver a message. Why are you three here?" Wallace asked pointing at them, shaking his head.

"Because, I'm not letting this go on any longer. I should have put a stop to all this when I found out, when we all found out. I've respected her wishes long enough." Keith spoke up. He knew that they had promised her just hours ago to stay out of, the same thing he had done months ago when he asked about the father. "She's my daughter, and sometimes I can't keep my promises to her."

"I understand that, but Mac, Dick?" Wallace raised an eyebrow.

"Why would she give you a message?" Mac shot back.

"Because I was there?" Wallace tisked his tongue at her. "Girl you bounced before she stopped crying, and read what he wrote."

"I actually came looking for Dick." Mac admitted. She wished that she was stronger, and could go against Veronica's wishes, but she couldn't. Loyalty was everything to her, and she wouldn't ruin their friendship over something she didn't understand.

"Hey, I was trying to do what I thought was the right thing to do. He deserves a chance, and he wanted to apologize. I wouldn't have done it if I thought she would be hurt." Dick rolled his eyes. "As cool as you guys are, Logan's my bro, I wanted to put things straight with him."

"Wait a minute. If you're here, who's with Veronica?" Keith asked looking at Wallace.

"She was sleeping, didn't even stir when I left." Wallace told him.

"Where's Logan?" Mac asked, looking down the hallway Wallace had just come from.

"I don't know." Wallce said turning to look behind him. He was sure he had followed him.

oooooo

The arm of the couch, and pillows had her propped up in the Mars living room, Back Up curled at the bottom of her feet, and her hands rested on her stomach.

"Don't eat my cheese." She mumbled, her eyes moving under their lids.

He couldn't help but smile while he watched her sleep.

"Mmm." She moaned, moving her head. "Pickles."

He had to try hard not to laugh at her mumbles. It was easy to suppress when he saw her hand slip off her stomach, showing her round belly. She had kept this from him, for months. He had already missed so much, so many things he would have wanted to be a part of, doctor appointments, food cravings, and tears. Oh he could only imagine how beautiful her eyes would look when she was crying irrational. Finding out of sex, not being there, being kept away made his face heat in anger.

"Lilly." All his thoughts seemed to stop when she mumbled that name. "No Lilly." He could see the tear fall from her closed eyes. "Not Duncan, Logan." The words made his breath catch, and he could only wonder what she was seeing in his mind. "Lilly, Logan, Logan."

Something he did, some noise or movement made Back Up move, caring now that he was there and not giving him the attention he wanted. Getting off the couch, and resting his head in Logan's lap.

The loose of the warm from the dog made Veronica's legs move. Stretching out, making her face scrunch up in pain.

"Owww." She whined, her eyes still closed, she reached with her hand to message her legs, making herself sit up all the way, awkwardly she tried to reach her legs, but couldn't. Her eyes opened slowly as she pulled her hands back.

"Hey." Logan smiled softly, knowing she'd be mad that he was there.

"Logan?" she asked groggily, rubbing her legs together, her face still showing the pain.

He didn't wait for her approval, he reached out for her legs, and messaged her left one, and then her right, until her face relaxed again. "Better?"

"Why are you here?" she asked, still sure she was sleeping. She scooted down rather on the couch, turning to lay on her side.

"I'm not sure where else I should be." He offered her the truth. When he had arrived at her apartment he had been ready to yell at her, scream even. But the second he opened the unlocked door, and saw her fast asleep on the couch, he lost all his fight.

Veronica wiggled her hips trying to find something a little more comfortable, but knowing she wouldn't be able to. "I read it." She whispered. Glancing at the notebook that had been in the gift box.

"That was the point." Logan had written everything he could think of over since the day after Thanksgiving. He had written about how after Veronica had told him the baby was his, he had called Jayleen and broken things off with her. He wasn't upset about the break up. He wrote about how he had dreamed about Veronica after she had shown up at his house the first time. How he had tried to look for her on campus, and even went into the library after his classes to see if she was there, but he couldn't seem to ever find her. He even wrote about how much her words had hurt him, and how he would leave before he ever became anything like his own father. And he wrote about his words, about what he had said to Veronica that day. He knew that they would hurt her the most, comparing her to Lilly in that manner was the worst possible thing he could think to do. He had truly thought that she was there to tell him that they would be better off as friends, or that that night had been a mistake, because when he had woken up that morning she was gone. He had wanted to be happy, he had wanted to appear like she always did after their breakups, like the cool one. But he had failed. He had hurt her instead.

"I don't think you're like him, like Aaron." The guilt had been eating away at her, and she knew it. She didn't want him to think that she thought so lowly of him. "That wasn't the way I meant it."

"Then what did you mean?"

"They taught you how to hurt people, the people you're suppose to love." Veronica whispered, knowing that was the truth behind everything he had said to her. He didn't know any better. He had grown up listening to Aaron do nothing but put down his mother, and his mother doing the same in return. "I won't let you hurt the baby, or me, not again."

"Not giving me a chance is pretty unfair though, don't you think?"

She knew he was right. She didn't know for sure if he would hurt the baby, she was more worried about herself getting hurt, about sharing the baby with Logan and whoever he was making his life with. It was selfish, but true. "I had to make the hard choices." She took a deep breath, and knew that it was time to tell him everything, tell him what she had thought about while she was gone, before she found out she was pregnant. "When I came back from Virginia, before I had gone to the doctor, before I had even gotten off the plane, I had made a decision, one I had spent all summer thinking about. Logan, I never wanted us to end like this, to be this hateful towards each other. When I came back, I wanted to see you, the second I got home, the first place I went was the Grand, but you had checked out."

"Veronica I-"

"No, I need to get all this out." She stopped him. "You had checked out, so did what I always do, I dug, I found out where you'd gone, who you were with, everything. I knew you bought a house, and I knew you'd gotten back the night before. I'd known for a few weeks at that point, but I didn't know what I was going to do, I didn't know how I should feel about it."

"Did you know about Jayleen?" he wondered.

"No, that was a surprise. I'm not sure I would have gone to your house if I knew. But that's not the point. The point is, I knew before I came home that I wanted to see you Logan, that I needed to see you. I knew I wanted to find a way to make things work even before I found out I was pregnant. But then, when I did try to tell you, she was there, and you said what you said. What I wanted didn't matter anymore at that point."

Logan was silent for a long time, watching her lay there, her eyes heavy with sleep, and puffy from crying. "What you want is always going to matter Veronica, always." He whispered.

"I read that." Veronica gave him a small smile. "But I don't know if that changes anything, I don't know if anything you wrote can change what's already happened."

"We can't change the past, but I'm hoping we can try for a better future, if not for us, then for him." Logan glanced towards her stomach and smiled. Whenever he looked at her rounding belly he could feel it spread them him, the warmth and joy of knowing it was his child.

"I don't know." She whispered, and allowed the silence to take over.

Logan didn't need to argue his point any longer, and he knew it. She was too tired to keep up, and he wanted to just let her rest. He watched her until her eyes finally closed.

oooooo

That was how Mr. Mars found him, sitting on the floor in front of a sleeping Veronica, his head in his laps while he pulled at his hair.

"Logan, son." Keith said gathering the boys attention.

"Sorry Sheriff." Longa mumbled getting to his feet, and stepping away from the couch. "I know I shouldn't be here, but everyone was at my house, and I just, I didn't know where else I should be."

"Being here is a good start, but I don't think being here at 1 in the morning is really the best way to start off." Keith nodded at the boy before him. The minute his little girl had told him she was pregnant, he had pictured blowing Logan's manly hood off, but knowing how he's daughter reacted to thought of the Echoll's boy in danger made his fantasies die quickly.

"I'm sure that you've got a lot of questions." Logan smirked, that was an understatement. He had more than a lot, he had about a million, and each new question seemed to lead to hundred more he didn't even know he had. "That's why I made a trip to your side of town, to talk to you."

"How could she keep this from me?" Logan whispered harshly looking back towards the sleeping pixie on the couch. The thought still angered him. "Was she planning on ever telling me that I was going to be a father?" he knew that wasn't something he could ask her, because there were too many other things between them they needed to worry about.

"I can't answer for her son, but I do want to make sure you're looking at this from her point of view." Keith nodded towards the door, knowing it would be better to talk in the cold air, this subject would get them both fired up.

Logan followed the man outside of the apartment, but only down a few steps, well within hearing range.

"From what I understand this all came to be before she left for her internship back in June." Keith told him. "And from what I've gathered, when she found out, she went to tell you, only to be shut down, rather harshly I've heard. Now she never told me what happened, or what was said day, but I listened to her cry that night."

"She didn't tell me, she was trying to, but I wouldn't listen to her." Logan sighed, looking up towards the black sky. There were too many lights to be able to see the stars.

"Yes, well, like I said I'm not speaking for her." Keith reminded the boy. "There are defining moments in our lives, in Veronica's, moments that change her as a person, that redefine everything she knows to be true. And I think that day, redefined a lot of things in her."

Logan could only nod.

"She had me lease out the old PI office." Keith knew to most people that wouldn't mean much, but that Logan would see the significance in that. "She's even been talking more about working towards being a profiler, something that requires less field work, and she turned down a second year at the FBI internship."

"She said she had to make hard decisions." Logan whispered. "I don't know what to do."

"You need to do what you think is right." Keith said after awhile. "And I don't mean getting married. I don't think proposing to my daughter would be a good idea, for her or me."

"Well there goes that idea." Logan thought for a moment. "Is she going to let me even try?" he wondered.

"Has she never denied you what you wanted?"Keith chuckled.

Logan smiled. That was true. Even when Logan had been making her life hard, when he had put a target on her back and made her an outcast, she had helped him the second he had asked. She had even helped when not asked. She had given him the video's she had on Lilly, and he never really thanked her for that. The only time she didn't help him, was when he was over stepping and trying to keep her safe.

"Why don't you come by tomorrow, I'm making dinner, and Dick and Mac will be coming by." Keith wondered for a moment how his daughter would feel. "Or come by early, give you two sometime to talk. I'll have her call you tomorrow, after you've both had a good night's sleep."

"Thank you Sheriff." Logan said softly, reaching out to shake his hand, before leaving.

ooooo

Veronica easily accepted Logan back into her circle, but not more than that. She allowed him to come along to her next doctor's appointment, and wiped his tears away when he saw the baby for the first time. She was amazed at the small changes she saw in him for the next month.

He had read up on pregnancies, and even signed himself up for a parenting class, something she had decided to do with him. He seemed to stop drinking and partying, and the only reason Veronica knew that was because he spent most of his nights at the Mars apartment, helping with dinner, studying, and as Christmas approached, decorating the apartment with the Mars family. Many nights, when Veronica's dad was working late, she would fall asleep next to Logan while they watched something on TV. She was becoming more and more uncomfortable the bigger she got.

On Christmas eve Veronica sat in her little apartment with her father and her friends. Mac and Wallace were on the floor, Keith was in his chair, and Dick, Logan and Veronica were on the couch, all eyes were focused on the TV as they watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

"Here." Logan whispered, handing Veronica a small envelope. He watched her as she studied it for a second before sliding her finger under it and opening it. She pulled out the card, and gasped as what was taped inside of it. Logan didn't wait for her, he took the tape off the ring and held it for her.

"What is that?" Dick asked looking over at them.

"Is that an engagement ring?" Mac choked looking up at them as well.

"Logan, that better not be!" Keith almost shouted pushing himself towards the edge of his seat.

"Oh, I didn't realize I was so popular. Sorry guys, I'm off the market." He joked. "Seriously if I was going to propose it wouldn't be in the middle of a movie with all of you." Logan rolled his eyes at the jump. "It's a promise ring, read it." Logan said turning back to Veronica.

"I promise to let you crush my hand during the delivery. I promise not to hold it against you. I promise to tell you you're beautiful every day. I promise to always go the speed limit with you and our son in the car. I promise massage every leg cramp I can. I promise to change all the dirty diapers I can. I promise to help with late night feedings, and crying. I promise not to freak out over every starch or bruise. I promise to be there the first day of school. I promise to wipe your tears away when you don't want to let him go. I promise never to be late to a t-ball game, talent show, or concert. I promise to hold your hand when we have no clue what we're doing. I promise to take the blame if we screw up. I promise never to lie to you. I promise to be there, not only for our son, but for you, every step of the way, because everything in my life will always bring me right back to you. Love Forever Logan." Veronica read the card tearfully. When she finished she turned to look at him, smiling. She knew there were so many things he missed out on as a child, and he wanted to be a better parent because of that. She stuck her finger out as she sniffed, and allowed him to slide it into her finger as far as it would go.

"I promise to give you everything I have, if it will keep you two safe and happy." Logan whispered when she reached out to crease his face, her thumb rubbing circles on his cheek.

"Thank you." She choked out before he pulled her into a hug. After a second she began to laugh softly and pushed back from him a little, his arm still around her shoulder. "You're going to tell me I'm beautiful, even when I'm not? That's lying Echolls, something you promised not to do."

"To me, you're always beautiful." Logan smirked. Turning and looking at the faces of everyone else in the living room, Logan knew he needed to say more, or it was very likely Keith was going to shoot him. "I just want her to know that I promise to be there, for both her and that baby. I hope that the ring will remind her of that every time she sees it. She doesn't have to wear it on her finger." He clarified.

"But I will." Veronica sighed, looking at the finger that wouldn't go past her knuckle. "Once I'm not swollen to the size of a whale, and it actually fits."

"You're not a whale." Logan told her.

"Dude, if you were going to be a whale you'd be Narwhal." Dick announced.

"A what?" Wallace laughed looking up at him.

"You know the ones with the horns." Dick explained.

"Yeah, I know what a Narwhal is." Wallace said sitting up now. "But really, I'd picture her more as a killer whale. She's pretty fierce and all."

"No, you're both wrong, she'd be one of those rare whales, like the ginkgoed tooth or Pygmy Right." Mac announced.

Veronica looked at all of them horrified. Why did it seem like they had all put so much thought into the type of whale she would be?

"You are most certainly not a whale." Logan whispered while the three continued their conversation, moving on to the type of whales they would all be. "And I'm pretty pleased about that myself. But if you had to be a sea creature, I'd elect a dolphin, they do enjoy sex."

Veronica snorted and looked over at him. "Well I guess I should inform you that I'd rather be a penguin. You know that whole mating for life thing seems appropriate."

"Shall I build you a rock nest then?" Logan teased.

"If I was a penguin, you sure could try." She laughed.

They weren't together, no, not in the since of the word, but their bond was still the same. Veronica needed Logan, just like Logan had always needed Veronica. And Logan's ring had reassured her that he was trying to be committed to what they needed. That was why her own Christmas present for him was so important.

Logan opened the small packet Christmas afternoon in the Mars apartment. He had come by to get Veronica to go to Christmas dinner at the Mackenzie's while Keith was working at the Sheriff's office. Under the silver paper was a CD with his name written on it.

"You can't listen to it until tonight, on your way home." Veronica ordered.

"How is that fair?" Logan asked.

"Because I said so." She stated simply.

And so Logan waited, and he forgot that he was waiting. This was the first real Christmas experience that he had. Since his mother had died, he hadn't spent a single Christmas in Neptune, and even before that, he had never spent one like this. They ate, they watched TV, played board games, and enjoyed the family company. There was even a point in the evening when Mrs. Mackenzie has tried to get everyone to sing Christmas songs. It was the best Christmas Logan had had in a long time.

But as he was heading back towards his own home, after leaving a very tired Veronica, he remembered the gift, and quickly slipped it into the player. He waited for the first track to play, and nearly slammed on his breaks when it did. The second, third and fourth tracks where the exact same as the first, and Logan instantly turned the car around. He wasted no time once he got back to the apartment complex, taking two steps at a time, and not bothering to knock on the door.

Veronica sat in the living room, looking at the open box that contained all the parts to the crib, when Logan busted back through her door. She had been expecting something along these lines from him.

"Say it." He whispered as he closed the distance between them.

"Logan-" she started.

"I need to see you say it." He slipped his arms around her, feeling her stomach press into his lower half.

"Logan, I love you." Her voice didn't flutter, there was no nervousness to it. She was sure about what she was saying.

That was all he needed to hear before his lips crushed hers. She never once spoke those words to him, and he always knew that the moment she did, he was truly a goner. He couldn't leave her now, not ever, not even for a single night. When he had to finally pull away from her for air he smiled. Her breathing had increased, and he could see that dreamy faraway look in her eyes.

"Best Christmas ever." He whispered before kissing her again.

There was something about a good kiss, something about kissing Logan that Veronica had been longing for for so long. When she could start to feel her knees go wobbly, she had to push him back. Kissing Logan was like starting a fire, it spread through her whole body.

"When's your dad due back?" he whispered, knowing he needed to feel more of her, to touch more of her.

"He's not." She shook her head and smiled. She knew his train of thought better than her own. "He's over at the Fennel's. I might have told him it wouldn't be a good idea to come back tonight." He bite her lip and smiled.

Logan was quick to turn them back towards the small hallway that led them to the rooms. "Good, because I'm going to need all night." His laugh was throaty, and sexy, and everything Veronica remembered it being.

ooooo

By New Years new decisions were made. Veronica's things were being packed up, and sent over to Logan's house. There wasn't enough room in the apartment for a baby, and Logan wasn't willing to spend a single night away from Veronica and their unborn child. Much to everyone's surprise, Keith didn't protest the idea.

By the time that January was coming to an end Veronica was uncomfortably pregnant. Sleeping wasn't easy, she waddled instead of walked, her hips and back were sore all the time, and she found it nearly impossible to stand up. But every time she felt the baby kick, it took away all that discomfort, and turned it into pure joy.

Her water broke in the middle of February, and she wasn't really sure what it was. The contraction didn't feel anything like she thought it would, and she was sure she wasn't in labor yet. But Logan was quick to take them to the hospital, and stood true to his promise, he let her hold his hand as tightly as she wanted without saying a single thing about it.

Their baby boy was born with a pair of lungs, but to them it sounded like music.

When a tired, sweaty Veronica held her child for the first time a few moments later she cried as she talked to the baby.

"Aden Lynn." Veronica announced, looking up at Logan for approval.

"A new chapter in our story begins with you Aden Lynn Echolls." Logan smiled at the small face, before kissing the top of Veronica's head.


End file.
